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| 2001-11-04 | A storm in the parliamentary teacup Issues of any significance are conveniently sidelined. The
world can be on fire, but the Malaysian parliament would do
nothing. The government does not consult it on matters that
should it should: The new administrative capital of Putra Jaya
is built by one of its off budget agencies, Petronas, and
therefore out of its purview. Billions or ringgit for
development are announced without reference to Parliament.
Requiests for information are cavalierly ignored. The opposition
parties try to make it a debating chamber but with a Speaker
unprepared to take his role seriously, the effort is stillborn.
Afghanistan is not discussed in Parliament: it does not
interfere in other country's problem; the government would take
care of it, and MPs have no business in what is not theirs. The
House must exist as a rubber stamp for the government, not as a
sounding board of the Malaysian people.
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| 2001-10-30 | City Hall's arrogance confronts nature That neglect exacts a terrifying price. With the seat of
government shifting to Putra Jaya, Kuala Lumpur is not as
important as the wasteful superstructures built or planned there.
The priorities are wrong, but no one cares.
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| 2001-10-04 | Medieval Blood-Letting In Malaysia - CORRECTED
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| 2001-09-08 | Chiaroscuro: Tea For The PM - Strained and Bitter Two thousand community leaders from 120 Chinese organisations
gathered in Putra Jaya last week to pay homage to the Prime
Minister, Dr Mahathir Mohamed in an echo of China's imperial
past.
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| 2001-09-05 | The Jihad Of The Hamids Under The Shadow Of Tabung Haji And so, a jihad in Putra Jaya. It is the talk of Putra Jaya. Recently, Dato' Hamid Othman parked his car in a vacant
slot for the religious ministry. Dato' Hamid Zainal Abidin
seethed in unctuous anger and ordered the car removed. It
brought to public notice the jihad of the two men; the retired
army brigadier-general of religion became a minister and the
other religious advisor to the Prime Minister. It masks a bitter
control for huge properties and investments of Tabung Haji and
other institutions distinctly Islamic. Dato' Hamid Othman lost
control of it with his electoral defeat. He got some of it back
when he was appointed religious advisor to the Government. He
was appointed first executive then non-executive chairman of the
crown jewel, Tabung Haji, but the general soon removed him. But
he forgets the defeated minister has the Prime Minister's ear
more than his.
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| 2001-08-30 | The Chief Secretary Accepts Corruption Is A Problem And it only compounds the problem. For what he says is the
pro forma statement of intent while giving the green light to
civil servants to continue to be corrupt. The law requires
senior civil servants and politicians in the government to submit
their list of assets to the Prime Minister. It is kept secret.
Many on that list should be in Sungei Buloh not Putra Jaya. The
government does not want to root it out. It encourages it.
Indeed it uses it to retain their support. Recently, the SMIs
were given a million ringgit in special loans, only a quarter
need be returned. How do I know this? Dealers in specialist
cars are crowded with people placing orders with cash for
imported exotic motor cars. What better way to show that one has
arrived than to be seen in a high end Mercedes Benz or BMW bought
with money meant as working capital.
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| 2001-08-26 | Of Think Tanks and Empty Vessels
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| 2001-08-23 | The Rise Of Phantom Branches In The MCA
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| 2001-08-07 | Chiaroscuro: Is There A Sabah Issue?
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| 2001-05-29 | Burdening The People With The LRT
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| 2001-05-17 | The Vajpayee Visit: A Much Ado About Nothing? Mr Vajpayee arrived in Malaysia on Sunday evening,
attended a dinner organised by Malaysian business men, with
a formal welcome the next day in the new administrative
capital of Putra Jaya, 30 kms away from here. He had a
private a one-hour "four-eyes" meeting with the Malaysian
prime minister, Dato' Seri Mahathir Mohamed, and took part
in the bilateral talks. Curiously, there was no formal call
on the Yang Dipertuan Agung, Malaysia's elected King. He
visited the Petronas Twin Towers, the tallest buildings in
the world, at least until a half a dozen more under
construction elsewhere in the world are completed. But it
was punishing pace for an infirm 77-year-old leader.
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| 2001-05-17 | The Vajpayee Visit: A Much Ado About Nothing? Mr Vajpayee arrived in Malaysia on Sunday evening,
attended a dinner organised by Malaysian business men, with
a formal welcome the next day in the new administrative
capital of Putra Jaya, 30 kms away from here. He had a
private a one-hour "four-eyes" meeting with the Malaysian
prime minister, Dato' Seri Mahathir Mohamed, and took part
in the bilateral talks. Curiously, there was no formal call
on the Yang Dipertuan Agung, Malaysia's elected King. He
visited the Petronas Twin Towers, the tallest buildings in
the world, at least until a half a dozen more under
construction elsewhere in the world are completed. But it
was punishing pace for an infirm 77-year-old leader.
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| 2001-05-11 | The Country Heights' Raid: Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew Spins A Tale
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| 2001-05-11 | The Country Heights' Raid: Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew Spins A Tale
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| 2001-05-10 | UMNO Shoots Itself In The Foot Again
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| 2001-05-10 | The Country Heights Raid: The Kerfuffle Continues
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| 2001-05-10 | The Country Heights Raid: The Kerfuffle Continues
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| 2001-04-02 | Cancer In The 2001 Telekanser Fundraising Campaign
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| 2001-03-30 | From Perwaja To Proton Let us look at what he sees as successes: the F-1
motor race, the Commonwealth Games, Kuala Lumput City
Centre, Kuala Lumput International Airport, KL Sentral,
Putra Jaya, Langkawi (so successful that the finance
minister, Tun Daim Zainuddin, wants another 15 5-star hotels
built even if the existing hotels are empty most of the
year), the privatisation of garbage (because the householder
does not have to pay for them), the PUNB US$5 billion scam
(because it was discovered before it succeeded). These cost
an arm and a leg, provide no returns, and would for ever and
ever be a drag on the exchequer. We do not know how much
this sets up back, the figures beyond even Parliament's
reach. But they are dragged out as evidence of Malaysia
having arrived.
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| 2001-03-19 | Chiaroscuro: No Smoke Without Fire
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